Is faith quantifiable?

Question

Berean Study Bible

Luke 17:5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Add to us faith!”

6And the Lord said, “If you have faith like a grain of mustard, you would have said to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would have obeyed you.

Is it possible to add to or subtract from faith as if faith can be quantified by a number?

Romans 12:3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure of faith God has given you. 4Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, 5so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another. 6We have different gifts according to the grace given us. If one’s gift is prophecy, let him use it in proportion to his faith;

Proportional faith by multiplication?

Is faith measurable by some means even by some unknown spiritual means somehow?

Are the disciples, Jesus, and Paul talking about different degrees of faith?

Answer 1

Jesus said :

I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel [Matthew 8:10 KJV].

and, also :

O ye of little faith [Matthew 8:26 KJV.

In the context of these two quantified estimations, across a spectrum of 'little' to 'great' Jesus' comments relate to what people did, or said, or what attitude they had.

It was visible.

James has much to say about this :

What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? [James 2:14 KJV]

Faith, itself, as a quality, can only be 'measured' by God. And he does so, for he justifies them that believe, because he, alone, can see the faith. And can see his own righteousness, the righteousness of God, within that faith. Therefore 'Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him (by God) unto righteousness (divine righteousness)'. Genesis 15:6, Romans 4:9, Romans 4:22, James 2:23.

Not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law ... but that which is, through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God, by faith. [Phil 3:9]

But living faith can also be seen, by others as well, by works : by deeds, by words, by attitudes.

And thus the faith can be 'quantified'. By the quantity and quality of the evident results of that vibrant faith.

Answer 2

Is faith quantifiable?

Luke 17:5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Add to us faith!”

6 And the Lord said, “If you have faith like a grain of mustard, you would have said to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would have obeyed you.

Is faith quantifiable? The answer is YES, because faith comes from what is written in the scriptures and the word about Christ.

Paul wrote:

Romans 10:14-17 King James Version (KJV)

14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? 17 So then faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God.

It follows then if we want to increase our faith we must hear and take more knowledge from the scriptures. It takes time to gather convincing evidence as the basis for faith. (Hebrews 11:1) And it takes effort. One must be willing to spend time and put forth effort on a regular basis so as to gather the evidence needed to build faith.

Answer 3

Faith is direct byproduct of Grace. Grace is something we receive for free. Like a free loan to buy what we please. Because Faith is byproduct of Grace it can't be measured. Yet, Faith can be observed by actions or "works" (James 2:24). Now actions or "works" can be measured as Jesus Himself says that Mary "Magdalene" has loved a lot. Meaning her good actions are many compared to her bad actions(Luke 7:47). Jesus then puts in a balance her good actions and her good actions(love) override her bad actions. Jesus then proceeds to forgive her bad actions(sins). Jesus measures her bad actions compared to her good actions to determine the forgiveness of her sins. With the usual warning: "Do not sin no more". Of course, Mary was a human being and most likely would incur in sin maybe small venial sins during her life. But Mary had the immeasurable gift of Grace that was given for free from Jesus's cross. In resume: Faith itself cannot be measured. Works can!